Two figures appeared atop a building outside the White Tower.
"Mr. Iwao, the sound has disappeared."
Hanatarou turned toward the direction they had come from, worry showing in his eyes. "Mr. Ichigo, he'll be all right, won't he?"
"We've already come this far. All we can do is assume he's fine."
Iwao stared at the White Tower close before them and said grimly, "Our mission is to rescue the Soul Reaper named Rukia. This isn't the time to get distracted."
As he spoke, Iwao pulled a prepared grappling hook from the pouch at his waist and threw it directly toward the White Tower's low eaves.
"Is it over?"
Duan Mu looked up toward Sōkyoku Hill. Ichigo Kurosaki and Kenpachi Zaraki's spiritual pressures had vanished almost simultaneously.
Had they both been gravely wounded?
Duan Mu was not particularly surprised. For one thing, his memories already contained the outcome of this battle. For another...
Unlike Kenpachi Zaraki, whose power was mixed and unwieldy, Ichigo Kurosaki could always gain explosive growth at critical moments by communing with his Zanpakuto or through some other means.
Most importantly... the power brought forth by Ichigo Kurosaki's explosive growth could always surpass the results calculated from the power Kenpachi Zaraki instinctively drew out.
Based on that alone, the two were destined to have difficulty determining a victor.
One had instinctively sealed his own power, while the other had his power sealed and suppressed by his Zanpakuto...
To be honest, in Duan Mu's view, even if Ichigo Kurosaki, now wielding Bankai, fought Kenpachi Zaraki again, the result would probably not differ much from this one.
"What exactly happened?"
Shuhei Hisagi stood beside Duan Mu and followed his gaze toward Sōkyoku Hill. "Could there really be someone among the Ryoka capable of fighting a captain?"
What kind of